I remember getting this 5 star review from Dr. Nick Walker. Nick has been one of the leading minds of the neurodiversity movement for over two decades. Her conceptualisation of neuroqueer theory has been groundbreaking.
My book is available in most territories, but do let me know if you have difficulty finding it 😊
"I’m autistic," I say. A brief pause ensues, a furrowed brow from what I can see from the mirror, and then an unexpectedly humorous response: "Is that like a professional auto driver?"
Thoughts based on Michelle Garnett and Tony Attwood's article on "Autistic Flourishing" and how we, autistic adults, can thrive in this life without changing who we are.
When minority groups are facing a decline in their well-being due to real problems that affect their group, no amount of positive thinking will make that go away.
It is completely unreasonable to ask people to think positively about their lack of privilege in a situation.
Here are the top ten articles of 2023 collated and made into an anthology eBook. With contributions from Tanya Adkin ND Social Care & Family Services and Katie Munday Autistic and living the dream! The best part is it's free! Let Everyone know!
Stability in recovery requires more than abstinence. It requires support in all domains of life.
Autistic people, in particular, are more likely to struggle with social deprivation, and for us to achieve recovery and/or sobriety, we need support that takes account of the unique challenges that we face.
I don't like folks making money off my autism. And I don't enjoy transactional social relationships... especially those masquerading as some noble purpose.
I usually just block. But I'm getting sick of it.
This morning's DM finally brought this response from me.
"Honestly I don't try freemium apps that don't outline features for trial, paid, and free versions.
"I understand the value to you of any user's trial... marketing, user data, beta testing.
"I need to understand the value to me.
"That said, it sounds like a valuable app. Wish you luck."
And removed our connection.
Have some sensitivity when marketing to disabled folks, shall we?
Btw, no answer from neurodiverse huckster. Probably busy posting hundreds of DMs to y'all.
Folks, I realised that I'm a zest expert who is struggling with my zest.
Let's turn that realisation into something useful for us all!
Integrity is really important to me as a coach. While I am not perfect and I don't have everything sorted (and I am totally fine with that), it's important for me to be open and honest about my own challenges. That's something I do want to have high standards about.
I don't want you to look at my posts and think everything is fine with my life, and that I have some weird and unattainable level of skill for crafting my life that you'll never attain. I want you to know that many of my challenges are also or have been your challenges, at some point.
And that those challenges can be surmountable rather than insurmountable!
So I am being open and honest with you about my own zest struggles this week...and share what I am doing about it in case it helps you.
Zest is a feeling of being alive, energised, enthused and motivated. Zesty people have "get up and go" and do things that bring them joy and make them feel charged up.
When we are busy and we have responsibilities or deadlines, it can be tempting to cancel or avoid activities that are fun but not essential to completing those tasks.
I realised this weekend that this is often a false economy. I have a busy work period right now and I have a lot of external deadlines to meet. As a result, I've been spending my time and brainpower on just getting those tasks done. Yes, I've made some progress but...
...I feel rubbish. My mood has dropped a little. My energy levels are down. And, actually, I notice that I'm less able to engage with the things I need to do, and I'm having to "force myself" a bit more to concentrate. (That's never a good sign, personally.)
I spoke to my own coach and realised that I know what brings me zest BUT I am not making little zest pockets in my schedule to get energy from those things.
As a result, I committed to booking in 20 minute zest pockets into my diary - yes, just 20 minutes - to allow myself to indulge in things I am deeply interested in.
The research in psychology tells us that the emotion of interest can calm the nervous system and give us juicy brain chemicals that boost mood and make us feel energised...so booking in zest pockets is a small, doable and effective way to help myself feel better. And I'll be able to do my tasks better by taking some time out. Sometimes, doing the fun thing is actually the best thing to do to move your work/life admin forward! (I think we need to stop feeling guilty about this, as it is what we need to do what we want to do!)
My first zest pocket was to reconnect with a beautiful special interest from childhood.
As a child, I used to sit in the garden late at night and use my dad's binoculars to look at the night sky and tick off all the constellations I could see in my little i-spy guide. (How they didn't realise I was autistic, I don't know but, hey, it was the 80s.)
Last night, I went out to a dark field near my home for just 20 minutes and picked out some constellations. Then I came home and info-dumped what I'd seen to my very patient girlfriend, who listened and supported me to access my zest. The photos show some of what I saw.
I experienced such joy from stargazing again. And it only took 20 minutes of my time. This morning, I feel enthused and motivated, and my mood has improved a little.
Therefore, I am asking you...
What are you deeply interested in that you've neglected?
Could you spend 20 minutes with it to boost your zest this week?
How would you feel and what would the benefits be if you did so?
And when are you going to do it? Make that commitment to care for yourself by boosting your zest - even if it's in 2 weeks' time, schedule in a brain-date with yourself. It might just help.
I'll keep sharing my own zest journey with you in case it helps.
Reach out to me at any time if you have questions about how to boost your zest!
Morning, all!
Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to appear on SalesTV this morning.
I am talking about neurodivergence in sales, and how sales leaders can support their neurodivergent team members, as well as ideas for how to support yourself to deal with your workplace needs in sales.
If you want to work with me and see me in this setup, then the next chance is my emotional regulation workshop on the 27th of October at 7.15pm.
We'll talk about
what emotional regulation is
how emotional regulation/dysregulation can show up for ADHD and autistic adults
the kind of relationship you'd like to have to your emotions
one recommendation I can give for starting off a journey of emotional regulation
your mini-action plan for relating to your emotions in the way you'd prefer
We don't demonise any emotions (it can zap zest to do so) and I take a compassionate and accepting approach.
You get a free pdf workbook 3 days before the workshop to allow you to reflect and prepare, and understand more about the session. Captions will be on. You have your camera off if you need, and communication is through the chatbox, so no one needs to speak. We will also keep session confidentiality, and no recordings of you are sent out.
So if you'd like to see and experience your emotions in a slightly different way, this could be the session for you.
You get to work with a trained coach (me) for 1hr 15 minutes for just £15.
Against all expectations, our #kickstarer#Afterwords received in 5 days the same amount of money as it had received in the whole of the last 3 weeks. I had more or less surrendered, but now I renewed my hope!
My essay on the vision of death among #neurodiversity and 4 #TTRPG on the theme of death need a boost.
As one of my interviewees said, death in RPGs is always seen as heroic or futile. Help us to make it something simply human.
Hey #autistic pals, this looks interesting! Online summit (not sure what that means!) on #neurodiversity, grooming & coercive control. 27.11 to 1.12. Free.
Institutionalised parent carer blame is rife within services that are supposed to support neurodivergent children. A lot of this is because there is too much focus on safeguarding, and little to no understanding of the nuances of disability, how to assess need, or resources to meet those needs.